Celebrate the first day of spring with free treats from Dairy Queen and Rita's Italian Ice

Spring calls for indulging: from funkier outfit selections to experimental foods, warmer weather brings with it a sense of self-pampering. Why not let your taste buds celebrate as well? Today, the first day of spring, both Dairy Queen and Rita's Italian Ice are offering free sweet treats across the country.

Head to a Dairy Queen location near you to claim your Free Cone Day gift: a small vanilla soft-serve ice cream cone—until supplies last (the deal excludes locations inside malls). Bonus points: The chain will also gather donations to benefit Children's Miracle Network Hospitals throughout the day. Free ice cream while helping others out? Sign us up.

If you're more into ice-heavy freebies, head to Rita's Italian Ice to receive a scoop of its Italian ice between noon and 9pm today—a first-day-of-spring tradition that the chain has been keeping up with for the past 25 years and which we hope to continue to enjoy forever.

Anna is the National Digital Content Editor at Time Out North America. She still sometimes thinks to be one of Peter Pan's Lost Boys and will never understand the appeal of cats as pets. Follow her on Twitter at @AnnaBenYehuda.